30 Astonishing Facts About Tattoos

The record for the longest tattoo session is 56 hours and 30 minutes. The artist, Krzysztof Barnas, finished 11 tattoos, and he was only allowed 5 minutes after every hour to rest.

It only takes 3 days for inner lip tattoos to heal due to the rapid regeneration of the cells. Because of this, they will also fade and disappear in 1-5 years.

23% of people regret their tattoos, with the biggest regret being a tattooed name.

When starting an apprenticeship, aspiring tattoo artist usually practice on fruit. Grapefruit, oranges, and lemons are the closest texture to human skin.

Unsanitary tattooing practices can transmit diseases such as syphilis, hepatitis B and HIV; however, there has yet to be an actual case of HIV being transmitted via a tattoo application.

Tattoo numbing cream helps with pain, however it may disturb the inking process on the skin and affect the visual result of the design because it can make the skin swell and deform.

Government jobs have the most tolerant tattoo and piercing policies, but only 8% of government employees have ink or piercings.

States with the highest percentage of tattoo discrimination are South Carolina, Oklahoma and Florida. States with the most tattoo friendly public opinion are Montana, Colorado and California.

The U.S. spends $1,650,500,000 annually on tattoos, with 14% of all Americans having at least one tattoo.

The part of the body tattooed the most among women, is the ankle area. Among men, the most common spot is the arm.

In the United States, Miami has the most tattoo shops with about 24 shops for every 100,000 people. The city with the least is Salina, Kansas at 2 shops for every 100,000 people.

The most expensive tattoo in the world costs $924,000. It is done with half a carat diamonds encrusted into the skin instead of ink. No one has ever had it done.

The average cost of a small tattoo is $45, while the average cost of a large tattoo is $150 per hour.

New Zealanders are the most tattooed people in the world. This is mostly due to the island’s Māori who still get traditional Polynesian tattoos.

In Soviet Russia, some prisoners would get tattoos of Lenin and Stalin. This was not a form of support, but in case they were sentenced to death, guards would not shoot them because it was illegal to shoot at images of their national leaders.

Michelle Gabriel is a freelance writer and blogger and currently loving it! Her primary focus and passion is traveling, which she does full time and continues to be her preferred topic when composing articles.